In May 2011, Eisenführ Speiser launched its proprietary electronic file management system after several years in the making – thus becoming one of the first German patent attorney firms to do so. The form of electronic file management developed at Eisenführ Speiser adds strength to our system of organisation and collaboration within and between the various offices, opens up new paths of communication to our clients and is already making it easier to exchange documents with the patent offices and courts, which in some cases are developing and implementing similar systems.

‘The Electronic File in Patent Attorney Firms’, this year’s autumn seminar organised by the Federal Association of German Patent Attorneys for 11 and 12 October 2012 in Darmstadt, is focused entirely on this highly topical subject. Dr Ludger Eckey, partner and manager of the ‘eFile’ project at Eisenführ Speiser, has been invited to present the eFile concept at this two-day event and to report on initial practical experience gained with the system. His presentation will provide insights into how electronic file management has been and will be developed at Eisenführ Speiser. His talk will be supported by brief presentations by Brügmann Software GmbH and d.velop digital solutions GmbH, two software companies with whom Eisenführ Speiser is spearheading the creation of an electronic file system tailored to the needs of firms of lawyers and patent attorneys. The German Patent and Trade Mark Office and the Federal Patent Court will also be reporting on their activities in the field of electronic file management.